Long-term survival in a child with a central nervous system medulloepithelioma

J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2008 Nov;2(5):339-45. doi: 10.3171/PED.2008.2.11.349.

Abstract

Central nervous system medulloepitheliomas are extremely rare and malignant (World Health Organization Grade IV) primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNETs) that arise in childhood. Unlike other PNETs, medulloepitheliomas have a dismal prognosis, with only 2 reported cases in the literature in which the patient survived beyond 5 years after treatment. The authors report on the third known case of a child who survived longer than 5 years. A review of all the published cases of medulloepithelioma is also presented, and alternative treatment strategies for PNET tumors, including high-dose chemotherapy with stem-cell rescue, are discussed.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Antineoplastic Agents / therapeutic use
  • Brain Neoplasms / mortality
  • Brain Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Brain Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Child
  • Combined Modality Therapy
  • Disease-Free Survival
  • Female
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
  • Humans
  • Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive / mortality
  • Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive / pathology*
  • Neuroectodermal Tumors, Primitive / therapy*
  • Survival Rate

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents